TOPEKA, Kan. -- No. 24 ranked Washburn Ichabod volleyball begins conference play this week on Friday against Northwest Missouri State in Maryville at 6 p.m. They finish off the week on the road at Missouri Western the next day with a 6 p.m. first serve as well.
 

Setting The Schedule

>> Washburn volleyball begins conference play this week on the road against Northwest Missouri and Missouri Western. 

>> The Ichabods take on the Bearcats in Maryville, Mo. at 6 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 27. They round out the week against Missouri Western at 6 p.m. on Saturday. 

Quick Hits

>> The Ichabods are 9-1 on the year after picking up three sweeps last weekend. They are 2-0 in road matches, 7-1 in neutral court contests and have not played a home match.

>> Last weekend Washburn swept both Missouri S&T and Harding on day one of the PSU Regional Challenge. On Saturday, they swept Henderson State to finish out the tournament. 

>> Washburn moved into the top-25 of the latest AVCA Poll as they were ranked No. 24 with 115 total points. 

>> The Ichabods were picked to finish fourth in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll just behind Nebraska-Kearney. They received one first place vote in the poll. 

>> The Ichabods went 17-11 overall a season ago, finishing 5th in the MIAA. They went 11-3 at home, 4-7 on the road and 2-1 in neutral court matches. 

>> The 2024 roster is the most balanced by class in the Chris Herron era. For the first time in his tenure there are at least four players from each class on the roster. 

About the Ichabods

>> Alex Dvorak is second on the team with 82 (2.34 per set) while leading with a .429 hitting percentage. She has started all ten matches and also leads the team with 50 total blocks (1.43 per set). The junior is 14th in the nation and 2nd in the MIAA in hitting percentage and she is also 14th in the nation and first among MIAA players in blocks per set with 1.43. She has hit over .300 in nine of ten matches.

>> Jalyn Stevenson is the team leader with 107 kills (3.06 per set) while hititng .247 across ten matches with ten starts. She is also second on the squad in digs with 111 (3.17 per set) and tied for third with eight aces.  She is 13th in the MIAA in kills and 14th in kills per set. She is top-20 in both digs and digs per set as well. The senior has three double-doubles on the year. 

>> Corinna McMullen paces Washburn with 207 assists (6.09 per set) through ten matches with eight starts. She is also third on the team with 81 digs (2.38) while adding a team-high 14 aces. The junior is 9th in the MIAA in assists per set and 10th in total assists. She has three double-doubles on the year and five matches with at least 20 assists. 

>> Taylor Rottinghaus has a team-high 168 digs (4.80 per set) across ten matches. She has chipped in 35 assists and served 12 aces. The sophomore is 44th in the nation and fourth in the MIAA in digs per set while ranking eighth among conference players in total digs. She was named the MIAA Defensive Player of the Week last week after scopping 6.56 digs per set on the week, including a 29 dig performance against Harding across three sets. She was the first Defensive Player of the Week winner for Washburn since Sophie McMullen earned the honor on Oct. 10, 2022. 

>> Bella Limback is second on the Ichabod offense with a .427 attacking percentage while starting all 10 matches. She has tallied 72 kills (2.12 per set) and is second on the team with 35 blocks. The junior's hitting percentage is 15th highest in the nation and third in the MIAA. She is also top-10 in the conference in total blocks and blocks per set. 

>> Sydney Conner is second on the team with 161 assist (4.88 per set) across ten matches with two starts. The junior is fourth on the squad with 60 digs (1.82 per set) while serving five of aces. She has posted one double-double this season. 

>> Austin Broadie is third on the team in both kills and hitting percentage while playing all 10 matches and amking two starts. She has 77 kills (2.20 per set) on the year while hitting .323. She has racked up 23 total blocks including a team-high six solo stops. She has hit over .400 with at least six kills in three matches this season. 

>> Brynne Topolski has started in six matches and played in nine during her freshman season, logging 51 kills (1.96 per set) while hitting .207. She has added 15 blocks and 16 digs. 

>> Emery Keebaugh has made 43 kills (1.95 per set) this season while appearing in ninematches. She is hitting .137 while making 12 blocks and 16 digs. 

>> Maddie Steiner is tied for third on the team with eight service aces while playing and starting in all ten matches. The senior has made 46 digs (1.35 per set) from the back row. 

>> Natalie Hedlund has appeared in eight matches to record a total of 27 kills (2.25 per set) while hitting .297. She has had eight or more kills while hitting .350 or better in each of the last two matches.

Head Coach Chris Herron

>> Herron is in his 23rd season at the helm of the Ichabod volleyball program with a career record of 612-133 at Washburn. 

>> He has led the Ichabod to 17 NCAA Tournament appearances and six combined MIAA titles (five regular season and one tournament). 

>> Has been named MIAA Coach of the Year four times (2002, 2005, 2007 and 2011). 

>> Led the Ichabods to the NCAA National Championship match in 2021. 

>> Has seen his players earn 50 All-American awards, 90 All-Region/District awards and 46 All-MIAA first team selections. 

>> Spent 14 years as a high school coach at Tonganoxie HS and Golden City HS.

>> Is a 1980 graduate of the College of the Ozarks where he earned his bachelor's of science in physical education. 

Assistant Coaches

>> Shayla Conner enters her fourth season as an assistant coach for the Ichabods. 

>> The former All-American setter has helped guide Washburn to a 81-26 record in her first three seasons. 

>> In her first season she helped the Ichabods to the National Championship match. In 2022, Washburn won its first-ever MIAA Tournament Championship. 

>> She has coached six total All-Americans and nine All-MIAA first team selections.

>> Cade Berg enters his third season as a member of the Ichabod coaching staff as a student assistant. 

>> During his tenure Washburn has earned a pair of All-American honors and four All-MIAA first team selections. 

By the Numbers 

>> 2: NCAA Central Region Championships won by Washburn in the past five seasons.

>> 7: Number of sweeps this season. 

>> 13: Number of returning members of the 2023 team. 

>> 22: Consecutive winning seasons for Washburn all coming under Chris Herron. 

>> 130: Consecutive victories when winning the first two sets of a match. 

>> 612: Career victories for Herron at Washburn. 

Ranking Roundup

>> Washburn is 9th in the nation and fourth in the MIAA with 14.49 kills per set. 

>> The Ichabods are also hitting efficiently, sitting 16th in the nation in hitting percentage at .269 as a team. They are third in the MIAA. 

>> Washburn has been effective at stopping opponents attacks as they rank 8th in the nation and 2nd among conference teams with a .106 opponent hitting percentage. 

>> With 13.51 assists per set the Ichabods rank 7th in the nation and 4th in the MIAA at setting up kills. 

>> On defense Washburn averages 17.29 digs per set ranking 35th in the nation and eighth in the conference. 

>> With 96.5 total blocks on the year the Ichabods have the 20th most in the nation and second most in the MIAA. 

>> With a .900 winning percentage Washburn has the third best winning percentage in the MIAA and 14th in the nation. 

Milestone Markers

>> Jalyn Stevenson ranks 22nd in program history with 1,098 career kills. She needs 61 more to crack the top-20. She is also 15th on the program charts in aces and 23rd in digs. She needs 105 digs to reach the top-20 in that category as well.

>> Corinna McMullen is 12th in program history in total assists with 1,637. She also ranks 23rd in program history in service aces with 96. She needs five more to enter the top-20. 

>> Sydney Conner has 1,206 career assists, putting her 18th in Washburn history. She will move into 17th with 67 more assists. She needs 26 more digs to reach 500 in her career. 

>> Austin Broadie needs six more kills to eclipse 500 in her career. She is currently 45th on the program charts in kills. 

Scouting the Opposition

About the Northwest Missouri State Bearcats

>> Northwest Missouri State enters conference play with a 6-4 record after winning its last four matches. 

>> The Bearcats are 2-1 in road matches and 4-3 in neutral court contests. Friday will be their home-opener. 

>> Amy Woerth is in her 13th season in charge of the Northwest Missouri volleyball program where she has compiled a 218-142 record. 

>> Assistant coach Nick Sepulveda rounds out the coaching staff. 

>> On the year the Bearcats average 13.6 kills per set while hitting .203. They also carry averages of 12.8 assists per set with 17.5 digs and 2.1 blocks. 

>> Abby Brunssen leads Northwest Missouri with 125 kills (3.21 per set) while starting all 10 matches. She hits a team-high .331 while also leading the team with 49 blocks. She ranks third in the MIAA in blocks per set and 6th in hitting percentage. 

>> Olivia Dir is second on the Bearcats with 109 kills (3.03 per set) while hitting .175. She has started all 10 matches and is also second on the team with 121 digs (3.36 per set). She is seventh among conference players in total kills. 

>> Ella Caffery and Natalie Laiolo split the setter duties in 2024. Caffery has started six matches with 228 assists (5.85 per set) and has added 43 digs. Laiolo has picked up 194 assists (4.97 per set) with five aces and 92 digs (2.36 per set). 

>> Kyah Luhring leads the team with 150 digs (3.85 per set) and carries a .965 reception percentage on 143 total attempts. She has added seven aces and 40 assists across all 10 matches. 

>> Washburn leads Northwest Missouri 50-24 in the all-time series and are 19-9 in Maryville. 

>> The two teams split the season series last year with each team winning at home. The Bearcats have won six of the last 10 encounters. 

About the Missouri Western State Griffons

>> Missouri Western is 9-2 on the year and is on a five match winning streak after sweeping Southern Nazarene on Sept. 21. 

>> The Griffons are 3-1 in road matches and 6-1 in neutral court contests. They will play its home-opener on Friday against Emporia State. 

>> Former Ichabod All-American and Washburn Hall of Fame member Jessica Fey is in her third season as the head coach of Missouri Western where she has a 41-30 record. 

>> Asistant coach Izzy Enna completes the coaching staff. 

>> The Griffons average 13.1 kills per set while hitting .224. They pick up 12.0 assists per set with 17.7 digs, 2.3 aces and 2.2 blocks. 

>> Holly Heldt leads the team with 96 total kills (2.53 per set) while hitting .173. She is fourth in the nation and first in the conference with 29 service aces. Her 133 digs (3.50 per set) are second on the team while starting in all 11 matches. 

>> Taylor Russell is second on the team with 92 kills (2.63 per set) across 10 matches with nine starts. She is hitting .244 and is second on the team with 32 blocks. 

>> Anna Weberg paces Missouri Western with 172 digs (4.53 per set) across all 11 matches. She has added 26 assists with seven aces. 

>> Nessa Johnson controls the passing attack for the Griffons with 389 assists (10.24 per set) while starting every match. She is fourth in the conference and 31st in the nation in total assists. She helps on the backline with 109 digs (2.87 per set) while making 11 blocks. 

>> Washburn leads the all-time series over Missouri Western 46-40. The Ichabods are 17-15 against the Griffons in St. Joe. 

>> Missouri Western won all three contests last season, including a 3-1 victory in the MIAA Conference Tournament Quarterfinals. 

Take a Look Ahead

>> Washburn will finally head back to Topeka next weekend as they open the home slate of matches against Pittsburg State on Thursday, October 3 and Newman the next night. 

>> Senior night for Washburn will be on Saturday, November 9 at 6 p.m. as the Ichabods host Fort Hays State inside of Lee Arena. 

>> The MIAA Championship Tournament will be held between Thursday, November 21 and Saturday, November 23 in St. Joseph, Mo. at Civic Arena.